Bring Me To Life
by lilviorX
Summary: Jack Spicer is murdered in cold blood by Chase Young. A new shengongwu is revealed with the power to resurrect the dead. JackRai. SLASH YAOI SHOUNENAI MM BOYLOVE
1. Chapter 1

Warnings: Death, swearing, angst, slash/yaoi (Rai/Jack, Chase/Jack one-sided), H/C, slight Homophobia (do I need to give a warning for that?) 

Feedback: Please! And if you feel you need to flame, please make sure you say one good thing for every bad thing you have to say, it's only fair J

Disclaimer: Eeep, almost forgot to add that! I don't own the characters, I make no money from this. In fact I don't own anything but my computer and I don't make any money at all from anything. Also, the song lyrics are from Evanescence – Bring me to Life, and Within Temptation – Angels. Please don't flame me for my awful taste in music.

Chapter 1 – The smile when you tore me apart.

_Sparkling angel, I believed_

_You were my saviour, in my time of need._

_Blinded by faith, I couldn't hear_

_All of the whispers, the warnings so clear._

"Congratulations Spicer, I never would have believed you capable of it." Chase Young smiled and patted Jack on the head. Jack smiled and blushed. He looked at the four Xiaolin monks, tied up and stripped of their shen-gong-wu . _He'd_ led them there, set a trap, built a robot that actually managed to do its job, and impressed Chase. He was finally living up to the evil boy genius reputation he'd created for himself.

He grinned at his enemies, wondering what Chase had in store for them, he knew Chase had only wanted them there as they had an incredibly valuable shen-gong-wu, perhaps the most powerful one in existence. Amusingly enough, the Xiaolin didn't actually seem to know what this powerful weapon did; they'd discovered it un-activated and didn't have their pet dragon around to reveal its powers to them. Jack didn't care what it did; Chase had promised him any other shen-gong-wu the young warriors might have had with them.

They all had those annoyingly superior expressions on their faces, they looked angry at being inconvenienced by being held prisoner; there wasn't a hint of fear in them.

This angered him, why were they never scared of him? Why weren't they scared of Chase?

But then he saw something; Raimundo's eyebrows twitched and his scowl dropped. Kimiko's eyes widened, Omi gasped and Clay opened his mouth to say something.

They were all looking at Jack.

"Wha-" He started, then he felt a thump between his shoulder blades. He was going to turn around, but he felt a hot sensation in his chest, and looked down instead – a shining silver blade, dripping with his own blood, was protruding from his chest. He managed to take in a shuddering breath and vaguely heard Chase say;

"It's a shame you've outlived your usefulness."

Then he crumpled to the ground, eyes still wide in horror as they rolled back into his head.

Raimundo had been pissed off about falling into a trap set by Jack Spicer. In retrospect it all seemed so obvious. Now they'd lost all the shen-gong-wu they'd been carrying, including the extending-arm-sash, silk-spinner, lotus twister and a new one they'd only just stumbled across; it was a gold-coloured misshapen disc with some indecipherable markings on its flattest surface. Rai rolled his eyes as Chase patted his young apprentice on the head. What was it between those two? Jack's expression was one of pure adoration, yet Chase's was one of contempt.

With actions as smooth as the wind, Chase pulled a short-sword from his belt and raised it. Rai knew what he was going to do.

The look on Jack's face as he realised he'd been stabbed was utterly pitiable. He didn't even have the chance to scream his trademark girly scream.

Even from Rai's limited knowledge of the human anatomy, he knew the blade had pierced Jack's heart. And heart-broken was how he looked. His knees buckled and he wobbled on them for a fraction of a second before falling on his side, dead.

Rai jerked his glare from the body and looked up, Chase now towered above them and he held a second sword almost identical to the one he'd stabbed Jack with.

"Don't!" Rai winced as he saw the sword come down. But when he opened his eyes again Chase was gone, he had harmed none of the Xiaolin Warriors, simply cut the rope that tied them.

The shen-gong-wu – minus the new one – still lay on the floor, next to Jack's body.

"So, you reckon we're free to go?" Clay asked, eyes fixed on the body.

"Well, he's gone…" Kimiko said, also unable to shift her gaze.

"We will take Jack with us." Omi said, holding a hand to his heart, "He may have been our enemy in life, but as a fellow warrior he deserves an honourable burial."

The three agreed and also collected up the shen-gong-wu. They tore a portal open with the tiger-claws and solemnly returned to their temple. Neither Clay, nor Kimiko, nor Omi saw the silent tear that had crept down Raimundo's face.

Master Fung arranged a casket in the temple, but being winter, the ground was too hard for a grave to be dug. He treated the body with some oils that would slow the putrefaction process and removed the blade, neatly rearranging the young man's clothing around the fatal wound. Throughout this ritual, Master Fung was aware of a pair of eyes on him, he knew that three of his monks were training unenthusiastically on the other side of the compound.

"Raimundo." He spoke with his eyes closed, "Come here." He heard slow footsteps and a sniffle.

Raimundo looked at the body.

"His hair's a mess." He stated blandly. He knew how much pride Jack took in his appearance.

"My young monk, you must see death as a natural part of life if you are to ever find peace within yourself." Fung was saying, but Raimundo really wasn't listening, he was thinking about making Jack's hair look right.

He reached into the casket and touched the bright-red shock of hair, feeling the difference between the well-groomed, silky smooth strands, and the strands that had somehow become stuck together with congealed blood. A small cry caught in his throat, and he clenched his teeth to hold back the tears.

"I sense that you shared a bond with your enemy." Fung's voice didn't convey any emotion at all. "Did he know how you felt?"

"No." Raimundo sniffled. "And thanks to Chase Young…"

"Jack Spicer chose his own path, he chose to be ev-"

"What fucking difference does it make!" Raimundo shouted, "He was just a kid! Do you know how old he is? The others don't, but I do! He was fifteen! He was only a kid!" when he'd finished his outburst he hung his head. "I'm sorry, Master, I didn't mean to disrespect you."

Master Fung looked angry at first, but his anger soon dissolved in sympathy.

"Perhaps you should go and lie down, until you have control of your emotions." The old man tried not to sound too patronising.

Raimundo nodded and left the temple.

He lay at the base of a large oak in the adjoining field, rubbing a blade of grass between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand. He stared up through the bare branches of the tree, at the clear blue sky. It was a very cold day, he could see his breath in the air, but there was no breeze, no clouds. It was a beautiful and yet unremarkable day. He felt strange that he'd never really thought much about the feelings he had for Jack; he'd always just assumed it was what they meant by a love/hate relationship, he loathed Jack Spicer, but at the same time desperately wanted to take him in his arms and smother him with the affection that he'd so clearly been deprived of all his life. He couldn't count the number of times when they'd been stood next to each other and he couldn't decide if he wanted to thump the red-head, or kiss him. To complicate matters, he also knew how much Jack adored Chase Young. Rai remembered cracking jokes about the two of them being lovers before it became painfully apparent that Jack _was_ in love with Chase, but the dark-haired man felt nothing but contempt for the boy.

What a waste.

"Whassup?" Dojo's voice came from nowhere and caused Rai to sit up with a start.

"What do you want?" He asked in a low growl.

"Well, Kimiko asked me to look up this new shen-gong-wu you found, it took me a while – her description was awful – but I found out what it is, and now I can't find her." Dojo paused and looked up at Raimundo's face. "You okay, kid?"

"Just a bit shook up, never seen anyone murdered right in front of my eyes before." Rai replied somewhat bitterly.

"Yeah, I heard about that, but once we all get over the shock, well, it'll be a lot easier collecting the shen…gong…wu…" He said the last three syllables slower as he could see something akin to rage in Rai's eyes.

"What if it had been one of us? You'd care then." Rai regained control of himself before he could go into another rage.

"Funny you should mention that." Dojo said, smiling, "The shen-gong-wu you found earlier – the one Chase got away with – has the power to bring a person back from the dead. It's called the resurrection stone"

Rai sat up dead straight.

"How can that work?" Raimundo had images of zombies stalking the earth.

"Well it can only be used once, it returns complete life to the deceased, and if the one brought back from the dead possesses the resurrection stone, he can use it to control armies of the dead." Dojo reeled all this off the top of his head.

"And Chase has it, what could he be planning?" Rai couldn't imagine Chase wanting anyone else to have control of an army of the dead, but if he intended being killed himself, and then resurrected so as to have control, whom could he possibly trust to do that for him? Jack would have done it. So what sense was there in killing Jack? Unless he thought Jack might try to steal the stone, or just leave Chase dead.

"How recently do they have to have died?" Rai had known what he was going to do the very second Dojo had first mentioned the concept of resurrection.

"Uh, if I remember correctly; twenty-four hours."

And Jack had been dead for ten hours.

End of chapter.

A/N: Not to insult anyone's intelligence, but the Within Temptation lyrics are supposed to be Jack's view of Chase. I got a nasty flame on one of my other stories about me being a pathetic emo person, can I put emo on a warning? Anyway, hope people like the story so far, as I said at the top; if I have done something wrong (spelling, grammar, continuity etc) please point out something that you did like about the story as well; it softens the blow to my ego J I intend updating very regularly, but if people aren't interested I'll concentrate on my other stuff.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Bring Me To Life

Author: Lilvior

Summary: Chase kills Jack, but don't worry; look at the title. 'A mysterious new shen-gong-wu' (the plot bunny that has been done to death) could bring him back and in the process help Raimundo realise his true feelings. Corny summary. As in all my Xiaolin Showdown stuff; Jack is fifteen and Rai is sixteen.

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: Death, swearing, angst, slash/yaoi (Rai/Jack, Chase/Jack one-sided), H/C, slight Homophobia (do I need to give a warning for that?)

Feedback: Please! And if you feel you need to flame, please make sure you say one good thing for every bad thing you have to say, it's only fair :-)

Disclaimer: Eeep, almost forgot to add that! I don't own the characters, I make no money from this. In fact I don't own anything but my computer and I don't make any money at all from anything. Also, the song lyrics are from Evanescence – Bring me to Life, and Within Temptation – Angels. Please don't flame me for my awful taste in music.

Chapter 2 – The life among the dead.

_Only you are the life_

_Among the dead._

Raimundo crept from the vault, silently scanning the area to see if he'd been spotted. The coast seemed clear, but Rai wasn't going to take any chances.

"Cloak of shadows." He whispered, wrapping himself in the enchanted fabric, and pocketing the changing chopsticks.

It took him an hour and a half to reach Chase's lair, he'd not taken a rest the whole journey. He sat down heavily outside the cave to catch his breath for a moment. When he felt the energy return to his limbs, he used the changing chopsticks to shrink himself, and flew into the mouth of the cave. It wasn't until he was nearly completely swallowed by the darkness, that he realised what he was doing; he'd walked into Chase Young's home on his own, relatively unarmed. He held his breath as he hurried through the entrance hall into a well lit room, where Chase sat on some kind of throne, being practically worshipped by Wuya.

"Ah, it's so nice to spend the evening like this, rather than having to listen to that brat whine about wanting to watch decorating shows." Wuya's shrill voice lacked any remorse. Rai faintly heard Chase snort in indifference, but was concentrating harder on passing unnoticed through the occupied room.

He eventually came across what at first looked like a storage closet, but it emanated life force. Raimundo was able to squeeze under the door – just. He scraped his ribs on the splintery wood, but made it through and returned himself to his normal size. The stone sat inconspicuously on a shelf. The power to resurrect the dead and it sat plain as a paperweight, and to an unsuspecting intruder, that was all it would seem to be. Still, to be on the safe side, Rai checked the flat side for the markings he'd seen, he recognised what looked like a butterfly in a circle. Yep, he'd seen that symbol before, this was the resurrection stone.

He tucked the stone away into his pocket, shrunk, and slipped out under the door.

He ran all the way home, mentally calculating how long he had left; he'd had to wait until the others went to sleep before he could sneak out, and by the time he got back to the temple Jack would have been dead for seventeen hours, giving him seven hours to spare. His heart beat harder as he could imagine his plan actually working. The temple came into view over the hillside, and he broke into a sprint. He was so excited and so utterly exhausted, that he forgot to conceal himself with the cloak of shadows.

Clay hadn't slept well. Like most boys around that age; he had never seen anyone murdered before his eyes, and the look in Jack's eyes as he'd fallen to the ground was still kinda haunting him. Even a low-down dirty varmint like Spicer didn't deserve to be – literally – stabbed in the back like that. Also, like Raimundo, he had considered what would have happened if it had been one of the Xiaolin Dragons who'd been killed. It had never occurred to him before that they worked in very dangerous environments, and it was a miracle that none of them had died so far. And these were the thoughts that had disturbed his dreams until he woke up dripping with sweat. He didn't think he could face going back to sleep in case he had another of those dreams; the worst had been the one in which Kimiko had died because of a mistake Clay made. He desperately tried to get rid of the image of her dying in his arms – it was making him feel sick.

"Need some fresh air." He muttered to himself, reaching for his jeans.

He jogged around the temple a few times, had a glass of water, and then jogged around a few more times.

He was about to go make himself a sandwich when he heard something outside the gates. He froze, who would possibly try to attack them at three am?

The gate creaked open and Clay grabbed the intruder around the throat, pinning him against the wall.

"Whoa, Clay, easy there!" Rai held out his hands to show he wasn't any threat.

"What in tarnation are you doing out there at this time of night?" Clay's Texan accent boomed through the still night air.

"Couldn't sleep; I went for a walk." Rai wasn't sure if Clay would swallow the excuse, but he didn't seem suspicious any more.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." Clay sat down, "It's been a weird day." Raimundo sat down next to him, silently anxious for Clay to go back to bed.

"I didn't realise what a dangerous job we do." Rai clutched the stone in his pocket. "Or how low Chase Young could go."

"I spoke to Master Fung earlier," Clay looked up at the stars as he spoke, "He's gonna go easy on us tomorrow." He slung his arm around Rai's shoulders in a comforting gesture, "But we should probably get ourselves some sleep."

Rai nodded, and the two of them slowly walked back to bed.

It was a whole hour before Rai heard Clay's breathing slow and deepen. He'd struggled to stay awake himself after all the running he'd been doing, but finally he had his chance to use the resurrection stone on Jack. He rolled off his mat and crept through the curtain that separated his patch from the others'. The air outside had gotten remarkably cold since his return from Chase's lair. Frost iced the tips of the grass and Rai could see his breath before him, he folded his arms across his chest, hugging his ribs for warmth. He'd removed his t-shirt when he lay down in bed, and his sleep deprived mind had not reminded him to put it back on. He tip-toed over the cold ground on bare feet, wearing only his jeans.

He pushed the door open and was surprised to feel that the air inside was actually _colder_ than the outside air. Nervously he made his way to the table where Jack's body had been respectfully covered with a blanket. Four candles were lit on a shelf just across from the table; they cast an eerie glow and sent shadows reaching around the room, also highlighting the shape under the blanket. His hand shook as he reached out for the corner of the dark fabric, it was soft and cold. Rai closed his eyes as he tore the blanket away in one swift motion, his other hand squeezing the stone in his pocket.

Raimundo stared at the body; he'd often heard people remark that dead people looked like they were just sleeping – he would have to remember that that was utter bullshit. Jack looked very dead. His pale complexion was tinged with a bluish grey around the eyes and lips, his fingernails were nearly black, and he emanated coldness. Rai touched Jack's hand and couldn't believe how cold the flesh was, and also how solid; it felt like he'd literally frozen solid.

He pulled the resurrection stone from his pocket. What if the stone brought him back to life without healing the gaping wound in his chest? He didn't know enough about the stone, but if he waited for Dojo to get up it would be too late.

He had no choice.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Rai held the stone over Jack's heart, took a deep breath and prepared himself.

"Resurrection stone!" He called, almost too scared to open his eyes. After a moment of no sound, he opened one eye; Jack was still dead.

He opened the other eye and sighed loudly. It hadn't worked.

His eyes welled up but he wouldn't let himself cry, instead he took hold of Jack's hand.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, bowing his head.

Suddenly the body jerked and Rai heard a loud intake of breath. His eyes were wide open.

A surprised/scared smile twitched at the corner of Raimundo's lips; he'd really done it – he brought Jack back from the dead.

End of chapter 2.

A/N: I know it's moving a little slowly, but I've already written the first half of the next chapter. Wow, didn't see the slight feelings Clay has for Kimiko coming! The plot bunnies really jumped on me with that one!

Please review! Also, I've read other people's Jack/Rai stuff and I se that most writers like to make Jack older than Rai, I don't know if this has ever been confirmed in the cartoon, but I like to think of Rai being older. I like Rai being dominant ;-)

All hail fanfiction!

P.S. My muse still hasn't come back, I'm running on auxiliary inspiration here. He's a little chibi emo-boy with short black hair, he ran away after I got a nasty review on my 'Billy and Mandy' fic. :-(


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Bring Me To Life

Author: Lilvior

Summary: Chase kills Jack, but don't worry; look at the title. 'A mysterious new shen-gong-wu' (the plot bunny that has been done to death) could bring him back and in the process help Raimundo realise his true feelings. Corny summary. As in all my Xiaolin Showdown stuff; Jack is fifteen and Rai is sixteen.

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: Death, swearing, angst, slash/yaoi (Rai/Jack, Chase/Jack one-sided), H/C, slight Homophobia (do I need to give a warning for that?)

Feedback: Please! And if you feel you need to flame, please make sure you say one good thing for every bad thing you have to say, it's only fair :-)

Disclaimer: Eeep, almost forgot to add that! I don't own the characters, I make no money from this. In fact I don't own anything but my computer and I don't make any money at all from anything. Also, the song lyrics are from Evanescence – Bring me to Life, and Within Temptation – Angels. Please don't flame me for my awful taste in music.

A/N: Just realised I've been calling the shroud of shadows the 'cloak' of shadows whacks self round head.

Chapter 3 – Bring me to life

_Now that you know what I'm without,_

_You can't just leave me._

_Breathe into me and make me real._

_Bring me to life._

A few months ago, Jack had managed to crash his helipack into the side of a cliff. He'd woken up on the beach 20 foot below about an hour later, badly concussed. He couldn't feel his limbs and he had thought he'd paralysed himself, or broken his neck. He hadn't been able to see anything either, just an ambient glow. He could only hear the sound of the waves crashing against the shore.

And that was how it was now.

He could neither feel nor move his body, he couldn't tell if his eyes were open or closed. He didn't even know if he was breathing.

But he could hear the roar of the sea in his ears.

Raimundo shivered in the cold early morning air, he tentatively touched Jack's face. The flesh was still horribly cold. He looked into the younger boy's eyes, desperately searching for some hint that he was okay, but the eyes were glazed over and the only thing Rai could see in them was fear.

"You're okay." He whispered, absent-mindedly stroking Jack's cheek.

He had little knowledge of science, and knew only vaguely of the state of rigor mortis, so he didn't know that Jack's limbs would only become flexible again once every cell in his body had been permeated by oxygen.

Slowly, he saw life returning to Jack's eyes, those beautiful red eyes that he'd never seen quite this close up. The boy blinked and his lips twitched.

"You're okay." Rai repeated, taking one cold hand between his own and rubbing it in an attempt to restore some warmth.

It took a whole hour for Jack to regain full mobility.

"I thought I was dead." He whimpered, feeling light-headed and bruised all over. He looked up in time to catch a guilty look on Raimundo's face. The ocean was still roaring in his ears and the more Jack thought about it, the louder it seemed to get until he realised it was simply blood pumping through his veins.

His mind was buzzing with confusion, the last thing he remembered was the blade sticking out of his chest. He'd been stabbed by… Chase? The sickness he'd felt as he'd crumpled to the floor hadn't been caused by the blade through his heart, but by the one who'd put it there. His eyes stung as he thought about how little he must have meant to Chase if it had been that easy to kill him. He tried to forget about the nights when he'd only been able to sleep by imagining he was lying in Chase's arms, he tried to forget about how he thought it would have felt to be kissed by those thin hard lips, and how he had wished desperately for Chase to make love to him. He was a smart boy, he knew Chase didn't return his feelings; but he always liked to imagine that there was a chance. Every time Chase had laid a hand on his shoulder, or stroked his hair, he had prayed to every deity that it would lead to something more. He thought that if he showed Chase just how dedicated he was, Chase would find it endearing and fall in love with him. Yeah right.

But now he felt stupid.

Chase had been tolerating him. Nothing more.

"You were."

He looked up at Raimundo. He hadn't even started on wondering why Raimundo was there. Or where '_there'_ was for that matter. And it didn't seem like he was going to get a chance to any time soon either.

"I was… dead?" He raised a rather bemused eyebrow. Well, what does one say to that?

"Yeah, Chase stabbed you-"

"Yeah I know about that." Jack snapped angrily, he didn't want to think about Chase any more.

"He broke- I mean, pierced your heart." Raimundo cringed at his tactless mistake.

Jack glared at him; pissed off with himself for being so obvious about his feelings for Chase.

"So, how come I'm sat here talking to you?" He sneered sarcastically.

"Uhm, have you heard of the resurrection stone?" Raimundo looked cold, and Jack wasn't surprised, the idiot was stood there half naked with no regard for the time of year or day.

But his thoughts snapped into alignment at the mention of the resurrection stone.

"You used the resurrection stone to bring me back to life?" Jack had an expression of utter disbelief on his face, he didn't know what to say or think.

"Yeah." Raimundo gripped the stone in his pocket, Jack obviously knew of its powers.

"Why?"

Raimundo had been feeling a little shell-shocked since it had sunk in that Jack was alive again. He felt a little disappointed that Jack was back to his old self; using a derogatory tone when speaking to him, and not seeming at all grateful. But his mind cleared when Jack asked him why he'd brought him back from the dead.

He didn't know what to say, but he supposed he'd have to come up with an answer sooner or later as his buddies were gonna notice that their dead enemy was breathing again the second a new shen-gong-wu revealed itself. He couldn't possibly tell any of them the real reason.

"I didn't want you to be dead." Was all he could come up with.

Jack was staring at him like he was the biggest idiot in the world.

"You do realise that you can only use the stone once, right?" He still had a condescending look in his eyes, but it was more confused than malevolent.

Rai nodded, afraid that if he spoke he'd give away too much of the way he was feeling, in his voice.

"So, now if one your Xiaolin dragons dies, you can't use it on them." Jack stated. "Not that I'm ungrateful or anything, but I think you'll regret using the stone on me when one of them bites the dust."

"The way you died was wrong." Rai muttered, inaudibly.

"What?"

He took a deep breath.

"The way you died," He said, louder, "was wrong." He looked the red-head in the eyes, hating the way he was frowning. Raimundo wanted to kiss him until the frown dissolved off of his face. He wanted to hug all the 'evil' out of him, make him forget all about Chase Young.

"What do you mean?" Jack's frown deepened.

Raimundo took a deep breath, and placed his hand over Jack's.

"I know how you felt about Chase." He began, "I watched him take advantage of you, using you for menial, pathetic tasks, _leading you on_. Then, when he'd had enough; he killed you." Rai stared angrily at the ground. "He treated you like a possession." When he looked up again he saw that Jack's eyes were wet with tears.

"I loved him." Jack whimpered, one tear rolling heavily down to his jawbone.

"I know." Rai said, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around Jack's shoulders, pulling the younger boy into a deep hug. He felt, rather than heard, Jack start to cry. Jack was still sat on the table, now Rai stood facing him, hands rubbing small circles on his back. He felt his shoulder getting wet, but didn't mind; Jack's face was buried in his neck and Raimundo raised one hand to start gently stroking his hair.

"He was a bastard, you don't need him." He whispered soothingly, he couldn't feel the cold anymore, Jack's body had warmed up.

They held each other until the sun came up.

A/N: I know it's short again. I'm gonna run out of lyrics before the end at this rate… But that seemed like a good place to leave it. If you are reading this now, please review before moving on! I know it's moving slowly, but if I don't get any feedback then I don't know if I'm writing the right way.

btw, my muse came home this afternoon! I'm dedicating a short one-shot to him; look out for it, it's called 'Betray Me'.


	4. Chapter 4

. 

Chapter 4 – In front of me

_All this time I can't believe I couldn't see_

_Kept in the dark, but you were there in front of me_

Clay woke up at exactly seven o'clock. His head was pounding from a particularly violent tension headache no doubt caused by his disturbed sleep. He sighed and got dressed, mentally reminding himself to make sure Raimundo was okay; he hadn't seemed like himself the previous night.

Everything was different. He couldn't quite manage to shake that thought; nothing was going to be the same ever again. In a bizarre way, Chase had not only killed Jack, but he'd also killed a vital part of the Dragons' childhood innocence. Clay wondered to himself if Chase had deliberately committed the murder in front of them, was Chase really that sick?

He heard movement and turned to face the direction it was coming from. Kimiko had just emerged from her sleeping area. She was wearing black joggers and a small black t-shirt – most probably a mark of respect for their deceased adversary.

"Kimiko." Clay called, getting up and laying a hand on her shoulder.

"Get off." She murmured, shrugging Clay's hand away. He couldn't quite see her eyes, but he could see a slight black smudge on her cheek; her make-up had run.

"Are you okay?" He asked, hurt that she was being distant with him.

"I'm fine, just didn't sleep very well."

Clay had to wonder if it was even possible to get a good night's sleep after watching someone being mercilessly slaughtered. But he thought Kimiko would open up to him more.

"You wanna talk about it?" He asked, tenderly. But she didn't even answer, she just walked on into the dining area. Clay hung his head, feeling dejected.

It was then that he heard a muffled moan. Omi.

"Hey little partner." Clay pulled the curtain back and sat next to where Omi was curled up, big round tears rolling down his big round cheeks.

"I do not want to fight evil any more!" Omi cried, clutching at Clay's chest and burying his face there. "I do not want to be killed! I am a turkey!" The usually brave little monk looked both terrified and ashamed.

"I think you mean chicken." Clay smiled despite himself and hugged his small friend.

"I do not wish to be any form of poultry, but I am scared." Who could blame him? Omi wasn't even a teenager yet, and he'd fought hand-to-hand with Chase Young; he'd danced with the proverbial devil without even thinking that death could have been lurking around the corner.

"We've got each other to protect us." Clay reminded him, hoping it would be enough.

Jack stared down at the tear in the front of his coat. It had been a very expensive coat, he bought it with birthday money a couple of years back, it was now quite tight across the chest, but whenever and wherever he wore it, he felt almost indestructible. The tear was surprisingly small, and Jack reckoned he could probably stitch it up himself, or simply take it to a leather-ware shop or tailors and get it mended. Undoing the buttons, the same shape tear was on his white tank top; except that the top was no longer white. He felt a little sick at how much blood there was, it was dried now and the fabric of his t-shirt was stiff. Cautiously, Jack ripped the material further, until he could see his chest. His pale skin was stained red, but all that remained of the wound was a short white line of a scar. He wondered what his heart looked like.

"I got you some clothes."

Raimundo's voice caught him off guard, and he jumped a little.

"Sorry." Rai apologised, laying out a pair of boxers, a fresh white t-shirt and a plain black sweatshirt. "Your jeans are okay, aren't they?"

Jack looked down at the black jeans, they were a little stiff with blood around the waist-band, but other than that, they were wearable.

He took the coat off grudgingly, feeling almost naked without it. The hole in the back was a perfect slit, but the whole thing would need to be dry-cleaned. He looked up at Raimundo who had the strangest expression on his face. He looked surprised, appalled and a little confused, but there was something else in his eyes that Jack couldn't quite place.

"Yeah, it's blood." Jack stated, peeling the top off, and grimacing when the fabric resisted being removed, it was stuck to his skin with blood.

"You're so thin." Rai whispered, he could actually see each rib under Jack's pale skin. He looked like the most beautiful porcelain doll.

"I have a high metabolism." Jack still sounded like every sentence was a verbal challenge. He felt uncomfortable at the way Raimundo was looking at him; he'd seen Rai's chest earlier; it was a sculpted work of art. Rai, himself, was a work of art, his skin was a healthy golden colour from years of playing football on the beaches of Brazil under a generous sun, he had washboard abs, no doubt from training and exercising with the monks, that was probably also how he'd come to own such thick biceps. Being held against that body had been like being wrapped in warm sheets of strong, protective cotton-wool.

Jack felt pathetic in comparison.

He snatched up the t-shirt and was about to put it on to cover his embarrassing body.

"Hey, wait a minute, I need to clean all the blood off you." Raimundo snapped out of his reverie. He picked a bucket of warm soapy water up off the ground next to him to show Jack.

"Fine, but I can wash myself." Jack still didn't like the way Rai was babying him.

"You won't be able to clean your back properly." Rai just wanted to get this done before the others woke up. He ignored Jack's whining protests and demanded that he remove his jeans. "It's cold, if they get wet you'll catch a cold."

Jack couldn't help laughing.

"Catch a cold? I just _died_!"

Raimundo stared for a moment then cracked up.

"Seriously though, take them off," He looked up, grinning, "I'll let you leave your _panties_ on."

Jack sulkily removed his jeans, avoiding Rai's eyes.

"Nice." Raimundo chuckled at Jack's unbelievably cute black boxers with little white skulls on. Jack concentrated on not blushing.

"Just get on with it." He growled, raising his arms above his head.

Raimundo took a sponge from the bucket and set about cleaning the dried blood from Jack's soft, warm body.

Raimundo stood outside the door, as per Jack's request, as the red-head got dressed. To be honest he'd really needed the time to cool down anyway. He couldn't believe how horny he'd been getting washing Jack. He smiled as he thought about the smooth lines that made up the shape of Jack's shoulder blades, the curve of his neck, the small groove above his collar-bone that demanded to be kissed. He thought that he was probably going to go insane if he didn't get to touch the young goth sometime soon. Rai leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, imagining the soft compliance of Jack's lips as they kissed… He moaned with pleasure as the thought sent blood rushing to his groin.

"Raimundo?"

His eyes snapped open and he was looking directly at Kimiko.

"Uh, hey." He stuttered, swallowing hard and hoping like mad that she couldn't see the bulge in his pants. "You're up early."

"None of us could sleep properly." She was eyeing him suspiciously, "Have you even been to bed?"

Rai opened his mouth to reply, but suddenly the door opened and Jack stepped out into the chilly morning.

"Hey, my hair feels gross, you got hot running water in this place or do I need to go home to wash my hair?" Jack didn't really register that Kimiko was there until she screamed.

She backed away, eyes wide with terror as she stared at Jack.

Raimundo grabbed her and turned her around to face him.

"Don't scream!" He didn't know how else to calm her down so he just told her what happened.

Jack watched as Raimundo explained why a dead man was up and walking. He noticed that Raimundo left out a fair few details; like how they'd spent the majority of the night in an intimate embrace, how Rai had gently cleaned the blood off his skin, he didn't mention anything about their conversation concerning Jack's feelings for Chase, either. Feeling a little impatient, Jack started picking dried clots of blood out of his hair and flicking them onto the ground. He saw that Kimiko was staring at him, she was listening to Rai, but staring at Jack; she looked revolted at the congealed blood he was retrieving from his hair. Eventually it seemed to become too much for her.

"Will you stop that!" She shrieked, surprising both boys. Raimundo turned around to see what it was that had offended her.

Jack looked up innocently and shrugged – 'what did I do?'

Kimiko turned back to Raimundo.

"We had the power of resurrection, and you wasted it on him?" She looked beyond irate. "He's the enemy!"

"But…" Raimundo looked lost for an explanation, and that was when Jack realised why he'd been brought back from the dead.

Raimundo was in love with him.

He gazed disbelievingly at the handsome young Brazilian; why would he want some pathetic, scrawny loser like Jack? He remembered the expression in Rai's eyes as he'd lovingly wiped the warm, soapy sponge over his bloodied chest. He wished now that Kimiko would piss off so he could ask Raimundo the real reason he'd risked his own life to get the resurrection stone.

Kimiko was still shrieking at Raimundo about how stupid he was to waste such a wu, but Raimundo had stopped listening; he was looking apologetically at Jack, a gentle smile curving his lips.

Jack smiled back at him.

End of chapter.

A/N: Jake keeps hitting me for not putting a lemon in yet. I know it's short again, but I liked the last line and it seemed like a good place to leave it. Sorry if I made Kimiko sound like a bit of a bitch, but… well, I think she is. Wasn't Omi cute! Please review, let me know if you want Kimiko and Clay to kinda get something on in the background.


	5. Chapter 5

Title: Bring Me To Life

Author: Lilvior

Summary: Chase kills Jack, but don't worry; look at the title. 'A mysterious new shen-gong-wu' (the plot bunny that has been done to death) could bring him back and in the process help Raimundo realise his true feelings. Corny summary. As in all my Xiaolin Showdown stuff; Jack is fifteen and Rai is sixteen.

Rating: NC-17

Warnings: Death, swearing, angst, slash/yaoi (Rai/Jack, Chase/Jack one-sided), H/C, slight Homophobia (do I need to give a warning for that?)

Feedback: Please! And if you feel you need to flame, please make sure you say one good thing for every bad thing you have to say, it's only fair :-)

Disclaimer: Eeep, almost forgot to add that! I don't own the characters, I make no money from this. In fact I don't own anything but my computer and I don't make any money at all from anything. Also, the song lyrics are from Evanescence – Bring me to Life, and Within Temptation – Angels. Please don't flame me for my awful taste in music.

A/N: Another short chapter, I'm afraid. It's getting closer and closer to exam time, and I have stacks of coursework due in this week, but over xmas I'll have loads of spare time and might even finish this one!

Chapter 5 – Taste in Men

Rai grimaced as he watched Kimiko running in the direction of the temple, screaming about Rai's idiocy to anyone in hearing distance.

"I'm sorry." He said, hating the fact that Jack had had to listen to that. "She really was upset when you were dead."

Jack couldn't help snorting, it didn't surprise him one tiny bit that Kimiko had only felt compassion for him while he'd been dead. He wondered if that had been why she was wearing black.

"How did the others take it?" He asked, genuinely curious as to whether or not Clay and Omi had been bothered at all by his death.

"Who, Clay and Omi?" Rai asked, stupidly, "They were really upset, it was Omi's idea to bring your body back here; he said you deserved an honourable burial."

Jack was speechless for a moment. But he supposed he would have been a bit shaken if one of the monks had been killed; obviously he wouldn't have shown it, but death was… upsetting.

"What about you?" He asked, hoping Rai would trust him with the truth.

Raimundo was silent for quite some time. He gazed into Jack's eyes and suddenly re-felt all the emotions that had barraged him at Jack's death. Jack's beautiful red eyes shone with feeling and understanding – he knew.

"I felt like my world had collapsed." Rai whispered, he stood directly in front of Jack. Their bare toes touched. "I felt as though I'd lost my reason for living." He leaned closer, never looking away from those eyes. He raised his hands to rest them on Jack's hips, gently pulling the younger boy towards him.

Jack's breathing had increased in depth and tempo, Rai's hands were soft on his waist, but powerful and commanding. He licked his lips and wished with all his soul that Rai would kiss him.

One of Rai's hands left Jack's hips and reached up to gently caress the red-head's cheek, before cupping it and pulling it towards Rai's own face.

Both boys closed their eyes as their lips met. It was a sensitive, love-filled kiss. Jack couldn't move for fear of ruining the moment, he simply stood there with his lips parted, feeling the softness of Raimundo's lips, unmoving on his own. His arms hung at his sides and he felt dizzy with bliss, he moaned softly into Raimundo's mouth.

Rai pulled away slowly, smiling and looking a little intoxicated.

He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by shouts from across the compound.

Clay had listened in disbelief to Kimiko as she explained that Raimundo had used the resurrection stone to bring Jack Spicer back from the dead. His first question was if Jack seemed okay; surely the last thing they needed was a zombified version of their old nemesis, Kimiko had said he seemed fine, but that that wasn't the point.

Clay understood Kimiko's anger; the resurrection stone should have been saved and used to bring back someone they needed in order to defeat evil. He couldn't fathom out why Rai would have wanted Jack alive, it didn't make sense; they were _enemies_!

So, naturally, he'd left the temple, leaving Kimiko to explain to Omi why it was a bad thing that a fellow teen was alive again after they'd all been so distraught at his death. He'd spotted Rai talking to Jack and instantly shouted to get their attention.

Both boys turned around looking rather guilty.

"Does someone wanna explain to me what the heck is going on?" Clay demanded. He wasn't so pissed off at Rai having resurrected the evil boy genius, but more so for Rai doing it without having informed them. Also, this meant that Rai had snuck off to Chase Young's lair to retrieve the stone, on his own! Did Rai have rocks for brains or something?

"Clay, I…" Rai hadn't quite thought his way through an excuse yet.

"You risked your life to bring this low down dirty snake back to life! No offence, Spicer."

"None taken." Jack replied.

Raimundo couldn't think of anything to say.

"Hey, wait a minute." Jack cut in. "But aren't you the good guys?"

Clay nodded, frowning in confusion.

"And wasn't I cruelly murdered by your- a _mutual_ enemy?"

"Well yeah, I guess so." Clay still didn't quite see where Jack was going with this.

"So, Raimundo, being a good guy, just saw bringing me back to life as _saving_ me, you know, from Chase." Jack folded his arms across his chest, face glowing with pride. He elbowed a rather confused looking Rai until he got the idea.

"Oh! Uh, yeah, I figured we should save anyone whose life is in danger, no matter what their good/evil orientation is." Rai scratched his head, trying to work out if what he'd just said made any sense at all.

"Well, I s'pose that's fair enough." Clay still looked a little suspicious. "But I'll be watching you, Spicer."

"Watch me all you want, I'm one of the good guys now." Jack grinned, he felt like he was in on some big joke.

"But Master Fung's gonna wanna talk to the both of you." Clay warned as he turned and headed back to the temple.

Jack turned back to Rai with a cheeky smirk on his face.

"I figured that excuse would go down a little better than the real reason." He said, smugly.

Raimundo blushed and ushered Jack away from the temple.

"I don't really feel like trying to discuss this with Master Fung yet." He said, looking a little concerned. "He won't be as easy to fool as Clay."

"You mean he knows you're in love with me?" Jack continued to gloat.

Rai rolled his eyes and headed for the field to sit under his favourite tree. Jack followed.

"So…" Jack started, lying down on the grass and folding his hands under his head, "You come here often?"

"Ha ha. Very drole." Rai sat up against the trunk of the tree. "How about you quit with the jokes and just tell me how you feel about me?"

Jack's grin fell.

"I'm not that good at talking about my emotions – it's not very… evil, y'know?" He felt a bit stupid at that point.

"Hey, you already know how I feel, so you don't have to worry about rejection." Rai felt a little impatient; from the kiss they'd shared earlier, he had just assumed that Jack liked him, but he needed to hear it confirmed.

"I'm not used to 'nice' guys." Jack sighed. "Don't get me wrong, I always thought you were hot. It's just that all my crushes have been bad guys." He frowned in concentration. "When you kissed me it was…" He couldn't describe it. "Heaven…?" Was that a good enough metaphor? He looked up at his new beau.

Raimundo smiled.

"Can I play psycho-analyst here?" He asked.

Jack nodded cautiously.

"You've always had a thing for the bad guys 'cause you've got this self-esteem problem. You seem to think you have this great big ego, but seeking out a bully is like saying to the world that you think you're a bad boy and you need to be punished-"

"Do you think I need to be punished?" Jack cut in, a mischievous grin on his face.

"All in due time. Where was I? I think you need someone to tell you what to do, so that you can't make your own mistakes. And also, you generally go for guys waaay out of your league, so that it isn't really that big a surprise when they turn you down." Raimundo turned to see what effect his analysis had had.

Jack looked lost in thought.

"And you're not just reaching out to me because you have a 'big-brother' complex and you think I need looking after? Do you pity me?" He was upset.

"Hey, no!" Rai moved over and pulled Jack up into a hug, "I think you're interesting; you're smart, you're gorgeous, it's also kind of endearing that you're a little bit mislead."

This seemed to appease Jack.

"So, why do I like you?" He scrutinised.

"Do you like me?" Rai feigned shock.

"Yeah." Jack mumbled, looking suddenly shy.

"Well, I suppose it would have to be because I'm so hot."

Both boys collapsed into laughter, Jack playfully kicked Rai, and Rai put a choke-hold on Jack in return.

The play-fight ended with Raimundo lying on top of Jack.

"I won't use you like he did." Rai whispered, brushing stray hairs out of Jack's eyes.

"I know." Jack whispered back, closing his eyes as Rai leaned down and kissed him.

This time they opened themselves up to each other, allowing a soft, sensual kiss to become heated and passionate until neither boy could tell where one mouth ended and the other began.

End

A/N: Hot? There WILL be a lemon in the next chapter. Sorry if I've ruined anybody's fun by over-analysing them, but I couldn't think of a better way to explain it.

Jake loves this, but he's throwing certain yellow citrus fruits at me in an attempt to get me to write some graphic smut.


	6. Chapter 6

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS A SLASH LEMON! PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION**.

Chapter 6 – Repercussions

_Sparkling angel, I couldn't see_

_Your dark intentions, your feelings for me._

"Do you understand that what you did was very dangerous?" Master Fung asked, looking down at Raimundo.

"Yes, sir." Rai replied, hanging his head. He'd been dreading this conversation ever since Clay warned him about it; fortunately, Master Fung had been considerate enough to not bring up Raimundo's feelings for Jack. He'd simply scolded him for being so foolish as to break into Chase Young's lair and steal from him. Also he wasn't supposed to use any wu when he didn't know its full abilities. Raimundo nodded and apologised repeatedly, promised it would never happen again and agreed to do double chores for a week. He also agreed to take personal responsibility for Jack while he was staying with them, and to make sure no shen-gong-wu were stolen in that time.

Master Fung kept it relievingly short, and dismissed the young Brazilian with a list of chores to be completed.

"I still don't understand why Raimundo would waste the resurrection stone on Spicer." Kimiko muttered, she hadn't really understood the explanation Clay relayed to her. "Is there something about him we don't know?" The only thoughts that came to her were very unlikely; had Jack saved Rai at some point that none of them knew about? Was Jack going to help them defeat evil? Maybe the two of them were related…

"I think he just took it a little worse than the rest of us." Clay mused, "And I suppose if I were given the chance to save a kid's life, I'd take it."

"Even if that kid was _Spicer_?" Kimiko put a disbelieving expression on her face, but in all honesty she was starting to understand what Clay was saying.

"Yeah, I think I would." Clay replied, then he frowned, "But I don't know if I would risk my life to do it."

How did Rai think the others would feel if Chase had caught and killed him too?

"Jack Spicer owes Raimundo his life!" Omi piped up, he was looking surprisingly cheerful. "We have lost nothing, but gained an ally!"

Kimiko and Clay exchanged expressions of unease: Jack Spicer, an ally?

Jack chewed on his thumbnail, waiting anxiously for Rai to return. He didn't feel very welcome at the temple, the other monks still hated him, probably resenting him for having the resurrection stone wasted on him. He didn't even want to think about what they were going to say when they found out about his relationship with Rai.

He'd already decided to abandon his 'evil' ways, and although he had no intention of fighting for good, he was finding himself interested in learning more about the martial arts. Once they all trusted him he could even build robots for them! Jack often felt as though he wasn't the most useful or nice of people, but when he held a spanner in one hand and a complex tangle of wires in the other, he felt as though he was in his element.

Dragon of technology?

He snorted in amusement, visions of himself fighting alongside the monks against Wuya and Chase Young flashed before him. He told himself it was a hilarious concept, but he couldn't explain the warm feeling he got when he thought about fitting in; having friends.

He was a little saddened that he would never be the evil ruler of the world that he'd always hoped to one day progress to. It had been his dream since he was ten years old, his mother had said; 'the world will be your oyster', and he'd decided to take it a little too literally. There had always been the jealous kids at school, the ones who made fun of him for being smart and different. Of course the teasing had gotten worse when he chose to make a statement by wearing goth make-up; even the other goth kids had looked on him with repugnance, but he always told himself he'd get the last laugh when he ruled the world and had every last one of the bastards killed. He couldn't help looking back on his early days of evil with fondness; Wuya had been the perfect companion for him – her insults barely touched him considering what he'd put up with in the past, and she was incorporeal so she couldn't physically hurt him or make him do anything, she'd also helped him establish his personality as the cynical evil genius. The seemingly unfriendly banter between them hid a deep connection and although neither of them would admit it, they had been very close to actually being friends. Jack had been able to confide in her.

At least until Chase Young came on the scene.

At first Wuya had mocked Jack's hero-worshipping, but now she acted like Chase's pet. She hadn't even been there when he died. Did she care?

He hated to admit it but he really missed her right now. As much as he was falling for Raimundo, the other boy was still pretty much a stranger to him.

"Well that wasn't too bad." Raimundo remarked, appearing apparently out of nowhere.

Jack snapped out of his reverie, and turned to face the smiling Brazilian.

"Do they want to kill me?" Jack asked, jokingly. He wasn't joking though; he thought they probably did want to kill him.

"Nah, I think they're just still kinda in shock about you dying." Rai sat next to Jack and hung his arm over the younger boy's shoulder. "They're still young, how would you feel if you saw another kid murdered in front of you?"

Jack had considered this; part of him was saying that he'd have laughed evilly at the deaths of any of the monks (before this), but in truth he knew he'd be pretty shaken up. Whenever anyone you know dies, it reaffirms your mortality.

"I guess I'd probably feel kinda sick."

Rai had run back to the spot where he knew Jack would be waiting, desperate to see him again. But Jack's first words to him had been so downbeat, it had upset him a little.

"I guess I'd probably feel kinda sick."

Wanting to liven up the moment a little, Rai leaned over and kissed him. Jack's lips were soft and pliable, putting up no resistance to Rai's hungry mouth.

Raimundo gently pushed Jack over and climbed on top of him; the expression of trepidation on the younger boy's face made him look so pretty.

"Are you gonna tell your friends about… us?" Jack asked, nervously.

"I guess we'll have to at some point, but don't worry about it now." Rai had been trying not to think about how he was going to explain this to the other monks; in all honesty, he was dreading it. "Let's think about more important things." He leaned back down and continued kissing the pale boy beneath him.

For the next half hour, the two boys forgot all about the others, they put aside all thoughts of shen gong wu, and ignored the darkening of the sky as day fell into night. They simply lay together, kissing, hugging and appreciating the moment.

"So Rai, where have you and Spicer been all day?" Kimiko asked suspiciously as the two boys wandered into the dining area for dinner.

"I was just showing him the compound." Rai answered, not daring to look her in the eye. He deliberately sat at the opposite end of the table to Jack. He wouldn't say he was ashamed of his feelings, he just didn't think that now was the best time for his friends to find out.

He heaped mashed potatoes onto his plate and started eating.

"You not eating, Spicer?" Clay's voice shared Kimiko's distrustful tone.

Rai looked up and saw that Jack hadn't put anything on his plate.

"I-I'm not hungry." Jack muttered, looking very uncomfortable. He didn't want to be sat at that table; the other monks hated him. He wanted to grab Rai and run back to his own house, but he knew better than to ask Rai to choose between him and the temple.

Rai was concerned, he wanted to reassure Jack, tell the others to be nicer to him, but he was afraid of giving away his emotions.

"Sure y'are." Clay stated, spooning mashed potatoes and sausages onto the plate in front of Jack. "Haven't seen y'eat anythin' since you've been here, y'must be starving." Clay spared a civil smile at their enemy-turned-comrade.

Jack was surprised at the friendliness, and began to tentatively pick at the food, eating slowly and politely despite the fact he was aching with hunger.

"So, Jack Spicer," Omi called, with a mouthful of food, "are you going to fight on the side of good?" His innocent eyes wide with hope.

"I dunno…" Jack shrugged, "Maybe… eventually."

This was enough to get Omi excited.

"I always knew there was good inside you! Now we will defeat Chase Young and Wuya, easily!"

There was a resounding smash as the glass of water Jack had just picked up, slipped from his fingers and hit the floor at the mention of Chase Young's name.

"Whoa there, partner." Clay put a hand on Jack's shoulder, and then got up to clean away the broken glass.

"You okay, Jack?" Raimundo asked, wishing he could just go over and hug the poor boy. More than that though, he wanted to murder Chase Young; wanted to kill the lizard-man for hurting – _killing_ – Jack, when all Jack had ever done was show adoration and pledge his servitude.

Jack nodded, looking longingly across the table at his lover.

Kimiko narrowed her eyes in contemplation, she'd been staying rather quiet throughout this exchange. She'd noticed a severe change in personality in Jack, and she was starting to think that this change could be accredited to Raimundo more than his own death.

"What are you guys planning after dinner?" She asked, slyly, noting that Jack remained quiet and looked to Rai for an answer.

"I was going to show Jack some meditation exercises." Raimundo replied, not seeing the expression of curiosity on Kimiko's face.

She nodded, seemingly satisfied with the response, and continued eating her meal.

The stars were all out by the time Rai and Jack were alone in the courtyard.

"So… meditation exercises, huh?" Jack grinned, raising his eyebrows suggestively and pressing himself up against the sexy Brazilian.

"Yeah, meditation exercises." Rai grinned back, pushing Jack away and motioning for him to sit down.

"Aw, do we have to?" Jack slumped down and tried to imitate the position Rai had his legs in.

"Yes, now, hold your arms out and lean forward slightly." Rai smiled as Jack closed his eyes and tried to keep his balance in the awkward position. "Okay, now just inhale deeply through your nose, and out slowly through your mouth."

Jack hated to admit it, but he could feel himself relaxing. A warm glow seemed to spread through his chest and out towards his extremities, and a headache that he didn't even realise he had was starting to wash away.

"Now, keeping you eyes closed," Rai's voice was soft and calming, almost sending Jack to sleep. "Lean all the way back, but slowly."

Jack felt his stomach muscles stretch as he tried to hold himself steady whilst laying down.

"Stretch your legs out."

Jack lay flat on his back on the soft ground, breathing the way that Rai had instructed him to.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now."

Jack had a feeling he knew what he was going to see when he opened his eyes.

Raimundo was kneeling over his hips, topless. He leaned down and gently licked Jack's lower lip, relishing the delighted moan he enticed from the boy. Pulling back briefly, Rai lifted the hem of Jack's t-shirt and tugged it off over his head, throwing it into the corner of the lawn.

It was a mercifully warm night, and neither of the boys were wearing shoes; in a tangle of hands and skin and kisses, they both managed to remove their pants so that they were rolling around in just their underpants.

As Jack lay on his back, panting for breath, Raimundo looked down at him, lust darkening his eyes. He wanted to make love to the red-haired so much that he felt dizzy.

"Jack," He whispered, brushing his lips gently over his lover's, "I think I'm in love with you." He craned his neck down and traced a line up Jack's neck with his tongue. "Can I touch you?"

Jack opened his eyes and looked up; Rai was stunning in the starlight, his chest more defined than ever, eyes burning with a fiery passion, and his breath rough against Jack's cheek. Jack rolled his eyes back anticipating a pleasure unlike anything he'd ever known, until he noticed that Rai was still waiting for an answer.

"Yes." He replied, smiling.

Rai lifted himself up and the fingertips of his right hand down the pale chest until the met the elastic waistband of Jack's underpants. There was already an excited bulge under the fabric, and it seemed to grow as Rai gently pulled the last item of clothing off.

Jack whimpered in pleasure as he was touched, arching his back for more contact.

"Please… please, more…" was all Jack could squeak out as Rai's hands left his groin. He opened his eyes and saw Rai removing his own underpants, releasing a swollen erection, that belonged inside the pale goth. Raimundo lay down on top of Jack, gently brushing bright red bangs out of the younger boy's eyes.

"Do you want me to…?" He smiled suggestively, but tenderly, rocking his hips slightly for a teasing friction that served more to arouse further than to relieve.

Jack could only nod, he was way beyond being able to speak, he could hardly see anymore save for Raimundo's stunning visage above him.

Raimundo traced a line along Jack's lips with his index finger, before dipping into the parting between them, Jack started sucking at the finger instantly, desperate to have any part of Raimundo inside him. After about a minute, Rai withdrew his hand and reached down behind Jack gently probing the wet finger between Jack's buttocks.

Jack whimpered in anticipation.

"You have to relax." Rai whispered, feeling Jacks muscles start to give way.

Jack cried out as the finger breached his tight entrance, he had expected intense pain, but this just felt strange. As the finger made its way further into him, the strangeness became pleasantness, and Jack gripped Rai's shoulders in want.

"Roll over, baby." Rai growled, hardly able to stop himself throwing the boy onto his stomach and ravaging him mercilessly.

Jack moaned as Rai withdrew his finger and climbed off him, quickly he got onto his hands and knees, presenting himself the act.

Rai positioned himself and gently pushed forward whilst pulling Jack's hip toward him. He heard Jack draw in a sharp breath, and loosened his grip on the pale hips.

"Oh god, argh, that's so…" Rai couldn't even finish the line, he felt as though he were being massaged by the most skilled, warm hands in the world. He rocked back and forth slowly and shallowly at first, but as his pleasure increased, so did his tempo. He grunted with each thrust and his nails were digging into Jack's sides.

Jack winced; he knew he'd feel sore the next day, but right now the only parts of himself that he could feel were the warm spot inside him that Raimundo's erection was rubbing against, and his own underprivileged erection, pulsating with need.

As if having read Jack's mind, Rai leaned forward onto Jack's back, holding his shoulder with one hand and reaching down under him with the other. He gripped Jack's manhood and continued his rocking motion, biting Jack's shoulder lightly.

Both of them were nearing their end, but to their frustration, it was still out of reach.

Rai gently pulled out and before Jack could question him, he'd rolled the goth boy onto his back, and used his knee to separate his legs. Holding Jack's hips up, he was able to slide himself back into the tantalising warmth. He lay back down on Jack and kissed him hungrily.

This position made it easier for him to rock back and forth, in and out; it also gave Jack's erection the pleasure of their bodies sandwiching it and rubbing delightfully.

Jack groaned into Rai's mouth, trying to move his own hips for more sensation;

"Rai, ugh…" he grimaced against Rai's neck, hearing their pulses combine. "I love you!" He cried, coming in plentiful bursts into the gap between their bodies.

Jack's orgasm contracted almost every muscle in his body, specifically the muscles wrapped around Rai's erection, squeezing an almost violent climax from him, as he filled Jack with his seed.

"Oh… god…" Rai panted, his mouth lax next to Jack's ear, "I love you too."

End of Chapter

A/N: Was that worth the wait? Jake certainly thinks so. Is Kimiko on to them? How is Rai going to explain his new relationship to the others? Prepare for a little angst in the next chapter, which may well be the last.

Please review, and I'll see you next time!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hmmm… where did I leave off last time…? Oh yeah, I remember. I apologise profusely to those of you who have been waiting months for this, please don't hate me.

Summary: Contrary to what I wrote in the previous chapter, this will not be the final chapter; I've had to cut it in half. So, in a way, this is the first half of the final chapter. The other monks find out about Rai and Jack! And Chase makes a reappearance. This is building up to what I hope will be a spectacular ending.

/p 

Clay awoke from what had been a fantastic sleep to the winter sun blazing through the window. He yawned, stretched and got up, not forgetting to set his hat atop his head before making his way to the kitchen for a hearty Xiaolin breakfast.

Omi, Rai and Jack were already sat at the table, a delectable platter already laid out: Fried eggs, bacon, sausages, beans, cereal, toast, oatmeal…

Clay salivated, grunting in reply to Omi's cheerful 'good morning', he sat down, grabbing a fork he piled food onto the plate in front of him. It was only once he'd filled his mouth with bacon that he noticed the mischievous looks being exchanged between Raimundo and Jack.

He narrowed his eyes in suspicion,

"Wha'sh goin' on?" he asked,

Jack looked up, innocent surprise on his face. Raimundo on the other hand had started to go pink.

"Uh, nothing?" Rai replied, trying to keep his expression… expressionless.

Clay opened his mouth to argue, he was concerned that Rai might have, once again, turned to the Heylin side, but he was cut off as Kimiko made herself known with a loud yawn.

"Wow, who made breakfast?" She asked, pouring cereal into a bowl.

"Me and Jack." Raimundo replied, pride showing in his smile. The smile faltered a little, and he spoke again. "Listen, guys?" He looked nervous now, and for some reason turned to Jack.

"You alright, Rai?" Clay asked, he could definitely tell there was something wrong.

"Jack and I are… together." Raimundo blurted, then, as if to emphasise his point, he swung an arm around Jack's shoulder.

Clay suddenly felt _very_ uncomfortable, why had Rai never told them he liked guys? Hadn't they been best friends for years? He shifted his gaze to Jack; the boy looked incredibly nervous. Kimiko looked surprised… but not _too_ surprised. Omi looked confused.

"Together?" He asked, "But I thought that Raimundo normally liked _girls_."

Clay cringed, if there had been a way to make the situation more awkward, that was it.

"Yeah, and when people die, they normally stay dead, too." Kimiko growled.

/p 

Rai felt crushed. They'd left the kitchen rather swiftly after Kimiko's comment; the breakfast hadn't gone as planned.

Poor Jack looked distraught.

"I guess I should go home." He muttered, staring at the ground.

"No, you're staying right here." Rai grabbed hold of Jack's hand and yanked him back into a hug. "You're staying with me."

"I guess at least they know now." Jack hated himself at that moment; Rai was going to lose all his friends, and it was all Jack's fault. He wanted to go home to his basement laboratory where he was safe.

"Jack." Rai held Jack's shoulders and looked into his shining red eyes. "They'll get used to it. They'll get used to you."

Somehow, that was all it took; Jack smiled, he felt warm all over, and it had only taken a few words from the boy he'd fallen in love with.

"Now, I'm gonna go shower."

"Can I come?" Jack asked, hopefully.

Raimundo laughed, it certainly would be damn nice to share a shower, but it wasn't a good idea; there was no lock on the door of the shower room.

"I'll only be fifteen minutes, 'kay?" He planted a soft kiss on Jack's lips, then turned and walked towards the main building.

/p 

Jack didn't particularly feel like trying to make conversation with the other dragons at this point, so he did what anyone in his position would do; he hid. He thought he'd found the best hiding place in the world – a tiny alleyway between the main building of the temple and a temple of worship. But his discovery was in vain, he'd been there not ten seconds before he saw a rather angry looking Kimiko standing at the entrance.

"Uh, hi Kimiko." Jack stuttered, he was well aware of how violent Kimiko could get when she was pissed off.

"What exactly did you do to Raimundo?" She demanded, balling her fists.

"I didn't do anything!" Jack suddenly wondered if she'd seen them together the previous night.

"Bullshit, you must have used some kind of wu, or a spell or something; Rai would never want to be with you otherwise." She sneered spitefully.

Jack got up off the ground, fear starting to mix with rage.

"Yeah? Well maybe you just don't know him as well as you thought you did." He might have been offended at the idea of needing to use mystical powers to get someone to love him, but what annoyed him more was the territorial manner in which Kimiko spoke about Rai. As if he was hers. "I'm sure you had plenty of chances with him." He added almost as an after-note.

Kimiko looked shocked, then humiliated and then she lunged for him.

/p 

Clay had just finished explaining to Omi why it wasn't necessarily a good thing that Raimundo and Jack were 'together'. Omi, in his refreshing innocence, had noted that a bond between them would serve to draw Jack and his mechanical skills to the Xiaolin side, and maybe love was just what Jack needed to see the good in… good. Clay hadn't been able to convince him that Jack was 'not the right _person_' for Rai. Omi couldn't understand why people should only be allowed to love people of the opposite gender. After much arguing, Clay started to doubt his own logic.

His father had always told him that men who loved other men were disgusting, that homosexuality was wrong. Back in Texas it was still illegal for two men to have sex, and Clay had never questioned his father's judgement.

Something about Rai being in love with Jack was still wrong though. Clay's plan was to speak to Raimundo on his own and ask how certain he was about his feelings, but before he could find his friend, he was distracted by a fight in the courtyard.

Kimiko was holding Jack on the ground and raining punches down on him. Jack struggled and, surprisingly, was able to smack his elbow across her face, knocking her onto the ground beside him.

"Whoa, easy there!" Clay shouted, sprinting over to them and pulling them apart. "What's goin' on?" As if he didn't know.

"I think she's jealous." Jack scowled, prompting another attack from the irate Japanese girl.

"I said, _calm down_!" Clay yelled, stepping between them. "Kimiko, Master Fung wants you to do the dishes from breakfast. Jack, I want to talk to you."

Kimiko slouched off, muttering curses under her breath.

The boys waited until she was out of earshot, then Clay took a deep breath.

"What _exactly_ is going on with you and Rai?" Suspicion evident in his voice.

At first Jack displayed an expression of defiance, but when he realised Clay wasn't going to attack, he emitted a heavy sigh.

"I always thought he was a total ladies-man." Jack said, staring at the ground. "But I think it's obvious to everyone that I never had an interest in girls." Jack went on to explain how his first crush had been a burly mermaid-hunter – something about that rang a bell in Clay's subconscious – and how soon after that he'd fallen head-over-heels for Chase Young. But all along he would sneak glances at Rai, especially when he was bent over to pick something up. Clay cleared his throat as a signal that Jack didn't need to dwell on 'Rai bending over'.

"I didn't understand the expressions on your faces until I saw the blade sticking out through my chest."

Clay hung his head, half through respect, and half through embarrassment.

"You guys all looked horrified, but Raimundo looked like it was _him_ who'd just been stabbed." Jack took a deep breath, he couldn't recount what had happened between his death and his resurrection. "Next thing I know, it's freezing cold, I can hear my blood pumping, my breath tastes stale, and there are these two huge green eyes looking down at me, filled with hope, fear and something that I didn't recognise at the time, but I think it was love."

He stopped there, staring into nothingness, trying to remember how he'd felt to see Raimundo there; he'd been surprised, obviously, but also suspicious, he certainly never would have guessed that Rai had risked everything for him because he loved him.

"But how do _you _feel about _him_?"

Jack looked up in confusion.

"Isn't it obvious?" He replied, looking up at the large Texan, "I love him, I would do anything for him."

Clay had to admit that Jack's voice and expression were both sincere, but how were they to learn to trust someone they'd been at odds with for so long?

/p 

Half an hour later, Jack was starting to worry. Raimundo still hadn't returned from the shower block. Panicky thoughts began to form in his mind; maybe Rai had decided he didn't love him, and had made a break for it whilst everyone thought he was showering? Or, maybe he'd slipped in the shower and cracked his skull! Jack was running before he realised it, the shower block seemed to be miles away but he was getting closer.

"Rai!" Jack shouted, pounding on the door. When he received no reply he twisted the door-handle and was surprised when it turned in his hand; unlocked.

The shower was running, steam filled the room so Jack couldn't quite see properly. He heaved a sigh of relief when he was able to just about make out a large dark shape in the mist.

"Rai, you've been in here ages." Jack started towards the silhouette, "You had me wor-"

It wasn't Raimundo.

A low rumbling growl emanated from the throat of the large leopard. Jack didn't need to study the slightly deformed head shape of the creature, nor it's malicious eyes, to know that this was one of Chase's minions.

Jack screamed; he felt rather stupid just standing there screaming, but he wouldn't stand a chance in combat with the creature, he wouldn't stand a chance running from it either, but most of all he was screaming because he knew that Chase had Raimundo.

/p 

Clay had attempted to make peace with Kimiko, but she was adamant that the relationship between Rai and Jack was wrong. She'd insisted that Raimundo was most definitely _not_ gay, she seemed to believe that Jack was using some kind of power over him. Clay had given up trying to convince her, and had started toward the shower block in order to talk to Rai and apologise for not being more understanding earlier, when he heard the scream.

He knew it was Jack screaming; they all knew the sound of Jack screaming, but did that mean he'd hurt himself? Or had something happened to Rai?

He broke into a run.

Jack was facing a huge leopard – undoubtedly one of Chase's 'pet's.

"Where's Rai?" Clay demanded.

"I think Chase has him." Jack replied without moving his lips, he seemed to be frozen in fear, and it wasn't exactly a surprise. Clay leapt forward and tackled the giant cat to the ground earning himself a bite on the shoulder, he seemed to be losing his hold on the animal when the door burst open again.

"Kangaroo knitting mittens!" Omi yelled as he landed on the leopard's back. He performed some strange move that was too quick for Clay to even see, and suddenly the leopard was defeated. "Chase Young sent this animal." Omi stated, looking rather proud of himself.

"Yeah, and he took Raimundo." Jack shouted, "I'm gonna find him!"

/p 

Jack instinctively reached over his should to pull the motor-string on his helipack, completely forgetting that he no longer had the device. He turned and started running for the gate.

"Wait up partner!" Clay was shouting, "We'll take Dojo!"

Jack stopped running and dropped to his knees, sobbing.

"It's my fault, it's my fault Chase took him!" He beat his forehead with his fists until Clay grabbed his wrists and pulled him up.

"C'mon, we're gonna get him back." Clay beckoned Omi and Dojo over and explained the plan, a rather simple; let's go to Chase's lair and get Raimundo back.

"Where's Kimiko?" Dojo asked, looking around for the girl.

"I don't know, but we don't have time to find her."

/p 

Raimundo woke on a cold marble floor, dressed only in his underpants. His first thought was that he must have slipped in the shower, but as soon as he'd had a brief look at his surroundings it became obvious that Chase Young had used the Displacement Charm to bring him here.

"Where are you?" Rai shouted, getting to his knees and vigilantly monitoring every corner of the room. He soon realised his vigilance was futile as Chase appeared to materialise out of the shadows.

"You stole something from me." Chase purred, his words dripping with malevolence.

"You stole it from us first!" Raimundo replied, jumping to his feet and preparing himself for a fight. "And I only took it 'cos you killed Jack!"

Chase smiled, it was always creepy when Chase smiled, his thin black lips looked like a leech curled between his nose and his chin.

"Yes, I believe I was as surprised as anyone when you revealed your 'feelings'." Chase sneered the last word as if challenging the young monk's emotions. He circled the room with his hands loosely clasped behind his back looking at Raimundo with a knowing expression. "But as you've gone to the effort of reviving Spicer, I may as well use him."

Rai frowned, he didn't understand what Chase was saying, but he knew it would be bad for everyone, specifically himself and Jack.

/p 

End.

A/N: Sorry about the wait, guys, also sorry that this wasn't the last chapter. The next chapter will be the last, I swear.

In the final chapter we will see everything come together and hopefully a satisfying conclusion, but I have loads of work to do at the moment, so I will warn you in advance, this may take a while. Sorry.


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